Revelation 6:4

Revelation 6:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
• New International Version (NIV)Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.

Context of Revelation 6:4

2I looked up and saw a white horse standing there. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory. 3When the Lamb broke the second seal, I heard the second living being say, “Come!” Then another horse appeared, a red one. Its rider was given a mighty sword and the authority to take peace from the earth. And there was war and slaughter everywhere. 5When the Lamb broke the third seal, I heard the third living being say, “Come!” I looked up and saw a black horse, and its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6And I heard a voice from among the four living beings say, “A loaf of wheat bread or three loaves of barley will cost a day’s pay. And don’t waste the olive oil and wine.”

Revelation 6:4 word by word

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἄλλος ἵππος πυρρός. καὶ τῷ καθημένῳ ἐπ᾽ αὐτὸν ἐδόθη αὐτῷ λαβεῖν τὴν εἰρήνην ἐκ τῆς γῆς, καὶ ἵνα ἀλλήλους σφάξουσιν. καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ μάχαιρα μεγάλη.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• there went outἐξέρχομαιexerchomai · to go outG1831
• anotherἄλλοςallos · anotherG243
• horseἵπποςhippos · horseG2462
• redπυρρόςpurrhos · fiery redG4450
• was givenδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
• to himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• that satκάθημαιkathēmai · to sitG2521
• ·ἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• to takeλαμβάνωlambanō · to takeG2983
• peaceὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• peaceεἰρήνηeirēnē · peaceG1515
• fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
• the earthγῆgē · earth: planetG1093
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• they should killσφάζωsphazō · to slaughterG4969
• one anotherἀλλήλωνallēlōn · one anotherG240
• a greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
• swordμάχαιραmachaira · swordG3162

Cross-references for Revelation 6:4

• Revelation 12:3Then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads.
• Revelation 17:3So the angel took me in the Spirit into the wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that had seven heads and ten horns, and blasphemies against God were written all over it.
• Zechariah 1:8In a vision during the night, I saw a man sitting on a red horse that was standing among some myrtle trees in a small valley. Behind him were riders on red, brown, and white horses.
• Zechariah 6:2The first chariot was pulled by red horses, the second by black horses,
• Revelation 13:10Anyone who is destined for prison will be taken to prison. Anyone destined to die by the sword will die by the sword. This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently and remain faithful.
• Exodus 9:16But I have spared you for a purpose—to show you my power and to spread my fame throughout the earth.
• Isaiah 37:26“But have you not heard? I decided this long ago. Long ago I planned it, and now I am making it happen. I planned for you to crush fortified cities into heaps of rubble.
• Ezekiel 29:18“Son of man, the army of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon fought so hard against Tyre that the warriors’ heads were rubbed bare and their shoulders were raw and blistered. Yet Nebuchadnezzar and his army won no plunder to compensate them for all their work.
• Daniel 2:37Your Majesty, you are the greatest of kings. The God of heaven has given you sovereignty, power, strength, and honor.
• Daniel 5:19He made him so great that people of all races and nations and languages trembled before him in fear. He killed those he wanted to kill and spared those he wanted to spare. He honored those he wanted to honor and disgraced those he wanted to disgrace.
• John 19:11Then Jesus said, “You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above. So the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin.”
• Psalms 17:13Arise, O Lord! Stand against them, and bring them to their knees! Rescue me from the wicked with your sword!
• Isaiah 10:5“What sorrow awaits Assyria, the rod of my anger. I use it as a club to express my anger.
• Ezekiel 30:24I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and put my sword in his hand. But I will break the arms of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he will lie there mortally wounded, groaning in pain.

Commentaries on Revelation 6:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Another horse - red - The emblem of war; perhaps also of severe persecution, and the martyrdom of the saints. Him that sat thereon - Same say, Christ; others, Vespasian; others, the Roman armies; others, Artabanus, king of the Parthians, etc., etc. Take peace from the earth - To deprive Judea of all tranquillity. They should kill one another - This was literally the case with the Jews, while besieged by the Romans. A great sword - Great influence and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4And there went out another horse - In this symbol there were, as in the others, several particulars which it is proper to explain in order that we may be able to understand its application. The particular things in the symbol are the following: (a) The horse. See this explained in the notes on Revelation 6:2. (b) The color of the horse: another horse that was red. This symbol cannot be mistaken. As the white horse denoted prosperity, triumph, and…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4The red horse symbolizes bloody violence on earth. The Roman Empire promised peace (the pax Romana), but widespread violence was the grim reality. This rider represents slaughter, including civil unrest and ethnic cleansing.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. red--the color of blood. The color of the horse in each case answers to the mission of the rider. Compare Mt 10:24-36, "Think not I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword." The white horse of Christ's bloodless victories is soon followed, through man's perversion of the Gospel, by the red horse of bloodshed; but this is overruled to the clearing away of the obstacles to Christ's coming kingdom. The patient ox is the…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 6:4

• Animals
• Horse
• Vision
• War

In the dictionaries

• Colour
• Conquer
• Hurt
• Mighty
• Shake
• Color; Colors
• Eschatology of the New Testament
• Ethics
• Horse, Red
• Jael

Commentaries on Revelation 6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings